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February 18, 2006
The Devil in the White City
I just finished The Devil in the White City, which I mentioned on January 25th, when I read it's first pages.
It doesn't normally take me a month to finish a book, let alone a good one, but in this case, that had nothing to do with the book, and everything to do with the hectic pace of life.
Larson is amazing - he weaves historical fact and primary sources into as compelling a narrative as was ever created, and laces it with amazing moments of poignancy. The counter-point between the transformative events around the Worlds Fair and the tale of the psychopath who lurked just outside kept me constantly off-balance.
I can't recommend it enough.
Chance encounteres led to magic.
Frank Haven Hall, superintendent of the Illinois Institution for the Education of the Blind, unveiled a new device that made plates for printing books in Braille. Previously Hall had invented a machine capable of typing books in Braille, the Hall Braille Writer, which he never patented because he felt profit should not sully the cause of serving the blind. As he stood by his newest machine, a blind girl and her escort approached him. Upon learning that Hall was the man who had invented the typewriter she used so often, the girl put her arms around his neck and gave him a huge hug and kiss.
Forever afterward, whenever Hall told this story of how he met Helen Heller, tears would fill his eyes.
Posted by dberger at February 18, 2006 10:51 AM